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Information to look at layers of sedemants, our jar with what we collected from the beach and some information about the types of different soils found along beach coasts..

4th April. Priest's Gyhll is a stream running down into the River Keekle. It is possible to access it from an almost hidden entrance from the road running from Whitehaven to Moresby. I have walked down it only a handful of times the last being Christmas day 3 years ago when I saw a deer. We had not been that route with the children before. It is overgrown and the woodland appears to have been left for some years. Not many people walk there and there is a magical feeling of it being like the land that time forgot. Walkmill its self would be a long walk to get to with the children. However, Priest's Gyhll is only about a 20 min walk from our house. So while we were exercising near to home due to lockdown advice it seemed a good opportunity to explore it. Many trees have fallen and just been left over the years. This has created a challenging but also exciting environment to explore and navigate. There are many opportunities for climbing. All 3 children love climbing. They are different ages, so are different sizes and have different levels of experience. The pictures we took today really showed the differing levels of assistance and support they need for their adventures. Rosie hardly ever needs any help and can usually get where she wants to go independently. Willow might need a bit of physical assistance now and then and some moral support. Rowan is inspired by his older sisters. However, being the smallest often needs a leg up or a steadying hand. The next post continues this theme and the inherent risks involved in climbing!

4th April. So here we see Willow having her turn sitting in the tree they named the "horsey tree" . In the previous post we saw Rowan sitting in it. He enjoyed it but wanted someone to stay near. Rosie, older, more confident sat with "no hands". Willow, possibly attempting some kind of side-sadle horse play, started to fall. The risk of falling is all part of the joy of climbing. As a parent I want to protect my children and also allow them the chance to climb. Risk is part of life. It cannot be eliminated or avoided if we are to live fully. Also, life is precious so joy of climbing must be balanced with safety. More often than not I have found that with supportive discussion children are generally able to come to their own conclusions about what may or may not be a good idea when climbing. Weighing things up together and discussion of variable factors of note such as branch size and strength, I hope will give them the tools for assessing situations themselves when they are older and I am not there! In the background see Jon and Rowan at a fallen tree across the stream. The next pictures show all the children climbing across the fallen trees over the stream. They loved crossing the stream on these unintentional bridges! Rosie could walk across independently. Willow was happier sitting and got across independently that way. Initially Rowan was determined he could walk accross himself unaided like Rosie. Given the chance to try he then decided standing with help or sitting with supervision worked for him. Experience and physical ability will usually grow over time. Confidence can vary day by day and even during the same outing and is influenced by many factors. I love seeing the children climbing trees and banks in woodlands. As an environment woodlands offer the potential for each child to go at their own pace, exploring and developing their skills, confidence and risk assessment skills! The playgrounds are closed at the moment to reduce risk of contagion from the virus. However, nature's playgrounds remain open and must do our health the world of good!

4th April. So here we have a very young tree the children were delighted to find. Right at the beginning of its life. As you can see there were many trees who have fallen over.. a bit of a tree graveyard in parts. At one part of our walk the wind picked up and we heard an eerie creaking noise. We could the trees swaying and creaking and could imagine how the others had fallen. Unusually we saw a tree with a metal tag and number on it. Only one though! We will try and find out why.

4th April. As we were walking down Priest's Ghyll who should we see walking up the far side of the Gyhll across the stream? Alison and her family who are also undertaking a John Muir award! The photos are of them taken by us and of us taken by them! We had a socially distanced chat across the stream before carrying on in our different directions. After we fought our way through the jungle of the ghyll we came out near the River Keekle. Exploring the lesser known territory was wonderful as was then saying hello to the familiar view! See the stone bridge shown going over the stream not far before it meets the Keekle? When we went on a West Cumbria Rivers Trust walk and talk along the Keekle last year, they told us that otter droppings had been found under that very bridge! This day we saw no evidence of otters but the children did say hello to some little creatures and their eggs living in a rock.

14th April. Another walk in the woods we can access from the road we live in. This time though instead of the usual circular walk we do of entering from our road, walking down through the woods and then out a t the bottom and up through the houses, we did the opposite. Maybe it was this break from the norm that inspired the girls to explore the stream. They loved following it going upstream through the woods. At times it was right next to the path and we walked alongside them. At other times they disappeared into the trees to follow it. When they reached a long low tunnel we were all of the same opinion that the best thing to do was to walk round it! We had set off with the plan to gather items to make a nature picture on our return home. So that's what they did on their stream adventure. They are mindful of what to take and what to leave depending on rarity or abundance.